Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto on Wednesday rebuked the lack of transparency in next year’s national budget, citing the absence of details in the “unprogrammed” part of the budget.
“While every literature states that P4.1 trillion is the national budget for 2020, in reality, it is not.,” added Recto.
In the House, Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano on Wednesday appealed to senators to finish their budget deliberations this month to enable bicameral meetings by the first week of December.
“Well, we’re praying and we’re also urging Senate President [Vicente] Sotto [III] and Sen. [Juan Edgardo] Angara if they could finish it by the end of the month so that we can hold the bicam by the first week of December,” Cayetano told a radio interview.
Recto said the real amount was P4,316.3 trillion, P216.3 billion higher than what is commonly stated. The P216.3 billion represents the Unprogrammed Appropriations.
While the release of funds from this is governed by several “triggers”, Recto said the authority to spend it came with the passage of the national budget.
Because of this, he said the P4.316 trillion was the implied ceiling of the proposed 2020 budget.
Once the latter becomes law, he stressed it confers standby authority to the executive to spend it, provided conditions are met. But barely discussed in this year’s budget preparation season is how the UA have been on steroids.
“In just two years, it has grown in Incredible Hulk-like proportions and speed,” said the Senate leader.
As this developed, Senator Christopher Lawrence Go said he would scrutinize the proposed 2020 national budget to ensure that no taxpayers’ money would be wasted and that it will be a “pork-free or cholesterol-free budget.”
The senator, currently the Senate Finance Committee vice chairperson, emphasized that 2020 national budget would undergo scrutiny to make sure that government can maximize it for the betterment of Filipinos lives.
“I’m in favor of pork-free, or cholesterol-free budget. I will be one of those who will dig into [the budget] since I’m the Vice Chair po of Finance,” Go said.
“If there’s a need to drain the cholesterol, we’ll use water so the cholesterol will float. We’ll do this. I want pork-free.”
Go also stressed the budget should be given back to the people through quality and easily accessible basic services, such as healthcare which could greatly benefit the indigent and those who are hit by calamities and disasters.
“I’m for cholesterol-free budget. Return to the people what should belong to them like basic services [such as] health—these are the people affected by disasters, needing them. Return the people their money,” explained Go.
Asked if he supports the adoption of the House version of the budget and the removal or vetoing of the reported “parked” funds, Go told that he will look into the matter carefully.
In 2016, Recto said the UA was P67.5 billion, the same amount in 2017. It nudged a bit to P75.3 billion in 2018. But 2019 saw it ballooning to P197.1 billion.
The hyperinflation continues next year with a UA amount of P216.3 billion.
The national budget can be broken down into two: the so-called “programmed” part (P4.1 trillion), and the “unprogrammed” (P216.3 billion). The former can be defined as funded appropriations, while the latter is conditioned on the availability of funds.
Under the fine print of the national budget, any amount in the UA can only be released if revenue collections exceed target, new sources of revenue are created, or when foreign loans or grants or borrowings are received. It can be likened to a parking mall of vehicles, each with a trip ticket to proceed but all waiting for fuel to arrive.
But the UA is also plagued by lack of transparency. It is not your ideal itemized section of the budget. Rather, large amounts are placed in generic boxes whose specifics lack elaboration.
For example, he said the biggest item in the UA is P90.4 billion for “Support to Foreign Assisted Projects.” It is bigger than the DOH agency budget for 2020. Kung para sa ano ito, hindi idinetalye sa National Expenditure Program (NEP). Parang cheke na may amount, pero walang particulars.
The next biggest is the P61.9 billion in “Budgetary Support to GOCCs”. Again, no itemization in the NEP.
The third is the P30 billion for the Risk Management Program. Here, at last, is a UA item with its purpose painted in broad but economical strokes. It is reserved for government commitments and agreements related to PPP projects, the names of which are, again, not specified.
But it will be wrong to say that all projects under UA are devoid of merit. In fact some are good, like the P5.4 billion for the Health Facilities Enhancement Program, the P5 billion for the Bangsamoro Normalization Program, the P5 billion for AFP Modernization.
He said there is also P2.4 billion for the National ID Project. “And P1.2 billion is the bayad-utang of some LGUs. Another payment for loan is the P2 billion for the previous IT contractor of LTO.”
“We were able to pry from the executive the projects to be funded by the mega P90.3 billion for projects to be funded by foreign debt, and the P61.8 billion for select GOCCs.”
He also said the big ticket items in these two are: the P40.6 billion for the NFA where previous payments made by the government for its loans will be converted into subsidy and the five rail projects worth P75. 8 billion.
Cayetano said he hoped the budget will be sent to the President earlier than the usual schedule which is the end of December.
“The earlier this is signed, the earlier our LGUs can plan and the private sector would see what the government’s plans and it would be better for the country,” he said.
Cayetano said Congress may not have enough time if the bicameral meetings between congressmen and senators will be held between December 15 to 18 because it is too close to Christmas and New Year.
“If we can pass it by the end of this month and there’s a problem, you (still) have another one to two weeks. If there’s no problem, then in three to four days we can finish it,” he said.
Cayetano said the House, which introduced institutional amendments worth P9.5 billion, would wait for the Senate’s own proposed changes.